Homily for Ordinary Time 28 - October 10, 2021

 

Homily for October 10, 2021

Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Bad Archery

 

            After Pope Francis was elected, in his first interview he was asked the question, “Holy Father, who are you? If you had to define who you were, what would you say?” He responded, “I am a sinner whom the Lord has looked upon.”

            What a beautiful description! It is both a humble recognition of our weakness, but unbounded trust in His mercy. “I am a sinner whom the Lord has looked upon.”

            But many modern people don’t see themselves as sinners. Sometimes we think we are good people. But listen to Jesus’ challenging words in the Gospel: “No one is good but God alone!” St. Paul teaches us in the book of Romans that “All have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God.”

            The Greek word for sin is “hamartia”, which is an archery term meaning “falling short”. It’s when we aim for the target but miss. What is the target we are aiming at? Jesus. When we look to Him, we realize that all of us fall short of being like Jesus. Instead we often compare ourselves with others: “Oh, at least I’m not as bad as that guy…I’m not as hateful as my mother-in-law…I’m such a mess compared with her, she’s got it all together.” But that’s not helpful, because the comparison isn’t with this person or that person – it is the comparison to Christ – which helps remind us that we all fall short – we are all sinners in the need of God’s mercy.

            But, we may say with the young man in the Gospel, “But I keep all the commandments!” Sure, we may not have killed – but have we harbored anger in our hearts? We may not have committed adultery, but have we always been pure with our thoughts? We may not have stolen, but have we been as generous as we ought? Sometimes our sins aren’t things that we’ve done (which we call sins of commission) but rather things that we haven’t done (sins of omission). Neglect of prayer, holding back a kind word, trying to get out of an unpleasant chore, not being aware of the poor and needy…these too prevent us from becoming like Jesus Christ.

            All of this reflection on our sinfulness should not cause us to despair, though. The Apostles felt like despairing when Jesus said that this young man, who had done everything right, still wasn’t perfect – the Apostles exclaimed, in despair, “Who can be saved?!” But Jesus responds, “With man it is impossible, but with God, all things are possible!” He is making the point that we cannot save ourselves through our own efforts – it is only by fully entrusting ourselves to God’s mercy that we will be saved.

            And His mercy is most lavishly granted in the Sacrament of Confession. How long has it been since you’ve gone? A year, five years, fifty years? Some of us have been carrying burdens of guilt and shame and hurt that could easily be healed if we bring it to Confession. Confession is not to make us feel horrible about ourselves as “lousy sinners” – no, as Fr. Mike Schmitz says, “Confession is a place of victory!” It is a place where the healing medicine of the Cross is applied to our wounds, where we get to partake in a share of Christ’s victory over sin.

             Personally, I go to Confession every 3 weeks. I always leave feeling lighter, freer, cleansed, renewed. I receive the grace to help me overcome temptation and to become more Christ-like. No one would go a year without showering, so if we clean our bodies every day (and our bodies will someday be buried in the ground), we should clean our souls regularly too, since they will live for eternity!

            I want to urge you this weekend to take advantage of the Sacrament of Confession. It will be offered after Mass today, in the cry room/day chapel. If you don’t know what to confess (or how to confess!) we have booklets on the table with an Examination of Conscience and how to go to Confession. Even if it’s been years, do not be afraid. It is completely anonymous, and the Church has always taught that there is an unbreakable “Seal of Confession” – where the priest can never, ever tell anything that has been said in Confession. So have no fear – Confession is where our misery meets God’s mercy.

            We are all indeed sinners who, through the Sacrament of Confession, the Lord has looked upon with mercy.